Former governor of Abia State Theodore Orji, who now represents Abia Central District at the Senate, has issued cheques to 60 pupils, some of whom are brilliant, some indigent.
All the pupils hail from the six council areas Orji represents.
Speaking while presenting the cheques to the students in Umuahia, Orji said that the scholarship scheme is for indigent and brilliant students from his senatorial district who were chosen after their application and interview.
Orji who was represented by the chairman of the scheme, Mr. Emma Nwabuko said that ten students from the six council areas were chosen making number sixty, “Five of the students must be indigent while the other five must be brilliant students”.
The senator said that the beneficiaries were chosen based on the Cumulative Grade Point Average (CGPA) for the brilliant ones while the indigent ones were chosen based on their performance during the interview.
Orji said, “Those who are benefitting applied through online and after meeting with the criteria the board set, were invited for an interview and today we are issuing them their cheques to collect their monies which is N100,000 per student”.
He regretted that many students who would have benefited felt it was a scam, “But after the interview we started receiving more applications probably because they had realised their mistakes”.
The Abia Central senator made it clear that the scheme is an annual event, stressing that the beneficiaries stand the chance of getting another cheque during the next academic session so long as they do well in their examinations.
Orji said, “The beneficiaries for this 2015-16 academic session stands the chance to apply for next session so long as they do well in their examinations to enable them qualify, so all you need do is to read your books and pass your examinations.”
He explained that the students were chosen from different universities, Polytechnics and Colleges of Education across the country, stressing that the higher institutions of learning are not based in the state alone.
Responding on behalf of the beneficiaries Emenike Favour, of the Michael Okpara University of Agriculture Umudike who is studying statistics, thanked Senator Orji for putting up the scheme and assured him that they will not disappoint him.